A Rose By Any Other Name
by Rena Cresten
Summary: What happens when Darien loses the love of his life? What will he do with his new daughter? What if he finds his soulmate, but they can't stand eachother?
1. The Proposal

"A Rose By Any Other Name" By: Rena Cresten Chapter 1  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon. If I did I would be rich and famous and I'll bet none of you have ever heard of me. Did I make my point? I thought so. Oh, and if this sounds like anyone's story it is a coincidence. I've heard of that happening before and I would hate for someone to think I did.  
  
Author's Notes: This is the first story I have ever published on something as large as FanFiction.net. I posted for a short while on a web site that isn't operating anymore. I hope someone out there likes this. It just occurred to me today and I figured I should start writing. Oh, and I love reviews. Good, Bad, or Indifferent. I'll take them all. Oh, and thanks for reading. I hope to get this up and finished as soon as I can. Waiting for chapters bugs me too. So...... On with the show......  
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"Darien!" I splashed her furiously a few more moments and then stopped, staring at her as she stuttered and wiped at the wet hair clinging to her face. She glared at me, oh if looks could kill, and all I could think was how angelic she looked. She was the most perfect woman I had ever seen, more than I could ever imagine. And she was all mine. Well, not yet.  
  
"What?" I smilled innocently at her then. She sighed in exasperation and rolled her beautiful blue eyes. I had a sudden and familiar urge to take her in my arms and kiss the breath out of her.  
  
"Don't you 'what' me mister! You ruined my hair! I was trying to keep it dry so I wouldn't have to deal with it before dinner. Now what am I suppose to do? I look like a drowned rat!" The image struck me as funny. And I could just picture a giant rat with those precious pigtails and furious frown. And the longer I imagined it, the funnier it became. Soon I was laughing hysterically and nearly drowned myself. Of course she took the opportunity to push me under and swim back to shore. When I finally came back up stuttering she was gliding out of the waves. The rat picture dissolved from my mind instantly when replaced by the glimmering vision before me.  
  
I lost track of time and space just watching her and nearly got swallowed by a huge wave. Thankfully it washed me ashore and a little closer to her. When I finally walked out of the ocean I had managed to focus my attention on my plans for dinner tonight. I had reservations for the two of us at the new hot restaurant just a few miles down the sea shore from here. She thought we would be meeting friends, and I planned to surprise her with ...  
  
Bikini.  
  
Oops, lost track of my thoughts. Where was I? Oh yes. When she is sitting there, looking at the menu, I'll quietly slip out of the booth and ...  
  
I want to be that towel.  
  
Damn, I did it again. If she weren't so beautiful ... if she weren't so beautiful what? I'd still have trouble thinking. How could she be anything other than the most perfect woman in the world, an angel fallen from heaven. I wouldn't be surprised if God himself came down and demanded her back.  
  
Even being next to her isn't enough. Touching her wouldn't be enough. I just can't have enough of her ...  
  
"Marry me." Oh no. Did I just ...?  
  
"What did you say?" What about my plans? But look at her. Those eyes of hers grew just ever so slightly in shock. Her perfect rose petal lips are open just enough for the gasp I can barely hear rushing past her lips. Did her porcelain skin go pale? Yes. But now it's gaining color rapidly. She's even more beautiful when she blushes.  
  
"Anna ..." I had to touch her then. So I dropped down next to her on our beach towel and grasped her slender little hand in my own. She fit so perfectly. "You are my world. You always have been. You are the woman of my dreams. More than I could ever ask for. You, my darling, are the sun in my day and the moon and stars in my night. I can't get enough of you. Your smile, your laugh ... your touch, and God help me, but I will never get enough of your kiss. You would make me the happiest man on earth if you would just marry me."  
  
I watched her falter for a moment, and my heart started to crack and nearly shatter. She can't say no. God please don't let her leave me. I'll die inside. She bit her lip and frown lines began to appear between her brows. I felt like I had to do something, and fast. I let her hand go and began fumbling idiotically in my bag for the tiny box buried down at the bottom where we wouldn't find it.  
  
"Darien ..." Her voice was so soft, so faint. I felt my soul slowly dying inside of me. She was saying no to me. She was going to leave me forever. I could just see it. "Baby, you can stop looking for the ring." I did stop. But my heart stopped along with my hands. I slowly pulled my fingers out of the tangle of junk they had found in there and tried desperately to reason through this. Then it came to me. I wouldn't go down without a fight.  
  
"Anna, please you can't leave me. I need you. I love you. I-" She placed a finger to my lips and I felt the electric shock travel through my whole body.  
  
"I'm not going anywhere. I just hope you aren't mad at me." I would have contested that point vehemently but she shook her head against that and kept talking. "I was hunting through your bag for your sunscreen earlier and found this." She held up the ring box and her behavior suddenly hit home. She wasn't going to turn me down. She was guilty about being found out for having the ring that was suppose to be a surprise. "I would have put it back when we got back to the hotel room but ..." By the time she shrugged and turned her sorrowful eyes on me I was in near hysterics. I didn't especially care that my surprise had been ruined, I had ruined it myself anyway. Just as long as she said yes ... wait.  
  
"Is that a yes then?" The guilt and sorrow left her face, a brilliant smile braking through. Every part of her perfect face seemed to glow with happy, heavenly light.  
  
"Of course it's a yes silly. I would follow you to the ends of the earth." She seemed so happy then. I couldn't remember her being any happier at any time before, least not while I had known her. And to know I had been the reason made this moment even better. Then again it took a moment before I realized she had said she would marry me.  
  
When it did hit me I let out a whoop and pulled her into me so quickly it knocked both of us over. I will never forget how it felt to kiss her just then. It was like holding some sort of goddess in my arms and feeling the power of every star ever created just under my skin.  
  
How I wish I could have known then what I know now. 


	2. The Wedding

"A Rose By Any Other Name" By: Rena Cresten Chapter 2  
  
Disclaimer: As I said, I don't own Sailor Moon. Never will. Bummer. Anyway, I hope you enjoy. And please review. I got one already and it made me want to post this next chapter same day as the first. See what reviewing gets you? Oh and, I got the reviews on the format, so I changed it. I hope this is better.  
  
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"Well, this is the big day man. You ready?" I didn't know right then if I wanted to scream, run away, or punch something. I eyed my best man, Andrew, speculatively and decided that punching something was probably out of the question. He wouldn't appreciate getting blood on his rented tux. I turned my gaze on the front doors, counting the steps it would take from here to there and trying to guess how far from there to a cab. Any cab would do. But it was too far and Anna's mother would have me beaten senseless and hog tied before I got even half that far. Then I considered screaming. I actually considered that one seriously. But I couldn't come up with anything good to scream so I gave up that idea too.  
  
"Hey? You in there Dare?" Andrew was a good guy, but I felt a slight hatred towards the good looking SINGLE man standing beside me. Maybe I shouldn't care whether or not he would want blood on his tux. Thankfully those thoughts were cut short by the burst of music that filled up the church. I ground my teeth and tried pitifully to look calm.  
  
Are those flower girls moving in slow motion?  
  
Yes, yes, the ring bearer's shoe is untied. That's right, just ignore it.  
  
Good God, how many bridesmaids does she have again?  
  
I was once more considering screaming, I had a few choice words now that I could use, when the music changed and there fell a new kind of hush over the church. And what seemed a lifetime later a vision appeared before me that I will remember all my life.  
  
I don't think I have ever been speechless in my life, but I couldn't have strung two words together to save my life. When I took one look at her the world stopped turning. Her hair was up in those ever present pigtails. But there were loops and curls and goodness knows what that gave her a royal sort of look. Her eyes sparkled and played peekaboo with me from behind the thin white veil. The dress slipped straight across her perfect breasts, bending up at the sides to attach to the long sleeves. I knew how small her wait was, but in this dress she looked like a pixie princess. No, she looked like an angel. Well, she always looks like an angel. But this was more. This was so much more.  
  
Before I knew it she was there, so close I could reach out and touch her. But I was so afraid this vision would disappear or that I would wake up from this dream if I moved. Of course Andrew helped me with that when he nudged ... no wait, nudge is too gentle a word. I nearly fell flat on my face he shoved me so hard. But I made it to her side to take her arm from her father's.  
  
From the moment I touched her I lost track of everything. I hardly remember saying 'I do.' And I certainly don't remember saying our vows before that. I do have the faintest recollection that she cried when I said mine. But I could have imagined that. Now, that isn't fair. She was such a caring and beautiful person she could have cried through the whole thing. And I loved her even more for it.  
  
"You may kiss the bride."  
  
"Huh?" Yes, that was a stupid answer. But I had already explained I was stupid to everything that was going on.  
  
"Baby, just kiss me. Okay?" She had the perfect voice too. Did I mention that yet? It wasn't too soft, but it was just rough enough to send chills down my spine. I'm sure you could guess what I did next. I lifted the veil off of her perfect little face, leaned down and brushed those sweet lips with my own. Once more the stars were being born, but this time they actually seemed to explode. I thought maybe it would kill me for a while, then the kiss stopped and the bursts turned to tingles. I was the happiest man alive just then. No one could have brought me down. Nothing could have ruined the natural high I was on. I was in love, I was loved back, and I knew that I had found the other half to my soul. Now she was mine, totally and completely mine alone. I was never going to let her go. Never. Nothing would ever come between us. Anna was the princess I had always dreamed about when I was little.  
  
You see, I was an odd little boy. I dreamed about princess' and castles and magic. Most little boys played with toy guns and ate dirt or some such garbage. I spent my days digging in gardens, and daydreaming about some perfect world I would never see. And in this perfect world there was a perfect princess. And she loved me, because I was her perfect prince. And we lived a perfect life. I fail to mention that the dreams were not actually that happy all the time. Not even most of them time. But I chose not to focus on that at the moment, if I did all I would think about for the rest of the day would be the tears my princess would cry as she reached out to me.  
  
You see why I refuse to think about that? Nope, no tears. Unless they are tears of joy, those I can handle.  
  
But tears are tears, right? 


	3. The Baby

"A Rose By Any Other Name" By: Rena Cresten Chapter 3  
  
Disclaimer: I own the story. That's about it. Okay, disclaimer done.  
  
Author's notes: Thanks for the reviews, they mean a lot. Even the ones that seem to say bad things were good. And I like that. Constructive criticism. What a wonderful thing. Oh, and I hope your still all enjoying this story. I know I'm enjoying writing it. One last thing, someone reviewed that I have a lot of spelling errors. If there is someone out there that is trustworthy and would like to proof read for me, I would love to hear from you. I try to get it as perfect as possible, but I know mistakes are still made. A fresh look is what it needs. Thanks again for reading. Enjoy ...  
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I don't know what I was thinking at my wedding. I keep watching the tape of it and I just don't understand what could have been going through my head. I mean, I get the whole blanking during the ceremony part. But for goodness sake, how much did I drink if I thought I could sing karoake. It was just awful, and I will never live it down. If only Anna would let me erase that part of the tape. I promised she wouldn't notice too much. I'll put something else just as good there. Maybe just go have the tape spliced to cut that part out. She, on the other hand thinks it is precious and made me swear not to do anything to it. I happen to think she is just out to make sure she has blackmail later on down the road.  
  
"You aren't watching that wedding video again, are you?" I turned just long enough to send her a fake little smile and watch her waddling down the hallway from the bedroom. Another three weeks and we would have a bouncing baby, uh, well just a bouncing baby. She refused to tell me what it is, and tries to tell me she doesn't know either. Now that is a load of crap if ever I heard one. She is so nosy and pushy and ... I think I had better stop before she reads my mind in that unnerving way she does and-  
  
"What did you say Baby?" Yeah, just like that. It's like she knows everything in my mind. Which just gives me the creeps. I mean what about my private thoughts? Some of those I don't want anyone to know, some of them I don't even want to know.  
  
"Nothing Anna, darling." She switched off the video, smiling sweetly to herself as though she had won something I didn't even know was up for grabs. What exactly is it about women that is so confounding?  
  
I watched her take the video and slide it slowly into its case and set it firmly back in its place on the wall. And oddly enough it was almost as though she had put some barrier on it, I wouldn't have grabbed that video from its spot again for anything. Yet another womanly mystery.  
  
"Baby, what do you want for-" I was just switching on the news, and my attention span was slowly dwindling. It was Sunday for crying out loud.  
  
"What did you say Annie?" She didn't answer me, which wasn't odd since it was dinner time. What was odd was the lack of sounds coming from the direction of the kitchen. She was headed in there, wasn't she?  
  
I felt an odd prickle run up my spine and spun around in my chair just in time to see my wife finally drop to one knee on the floor. She was holding her stomach and obviously in pain. Her grip on the back of a dinning room chair looked painful and I was suddenly reminded of the things I saw every day at the hospital. My doctor-mind never kicked in, it was too over powered by the husband part of me. So I ran to her side instead of to the phone and fumbled around, trying to help her to her feet. She pushed at me, having enough thought to point at the phone before collapsing into a ball on the floor. I grabbed the phone, punched in 911, and returned to her side. Her eyes were slowly closing, and the color in her face was draining rapidly.  
  
"Hello? Hello, is anyone there?" Oh God, someone had answered. Please don't hang up!  
  
"Yeah, yeah. I'm here. I need an ambulance at 321 north Maple street. My wife, she's in pain." I wanted to cry just then. I wanted to cry more than I ever had in my life. This tiny woman before me was everything in my world. She was my life blood. She was my heartbeat. She was-  
  
"Sir. SIR, are you still there?" The woman on the other end sounded tired. Had I been able I might have felt sorry for her.  
  
"Yeah, I'm here. My wife is pregnant and she is having pains in her abdomen and ..." I knew fear at that moment. I could have thrown myself in front of a freight train and never have been this scared. "... and she's bleeding. Badly."  
  
The world around me seemed to collapse in on itself and I was only able to focus on the pool of blood forming on our pale carpet. And much like on the wedding day, only this time with opposite circumstances, I blanked. I remember almost nothing of the ambulance ride to the hospital. Though I do have a faint recollection of hearing my wife scream. It was oddly comforting. I know I shouldn't feel bad about that, but I do. Being happy she was screaming was horrible. Or, it would have been had it not been such a strong sign of life.  
  
It wasn't until Robert Mosden, a good friend of mine and fellow doctor, shook me out of it that I become conscious to the situation.  
  
"Dare, come on bro. You gotta wake up. Your wife needs ya man." He was wrong. I needed her. I needed her like the air I breathed. Robert was trying to explain something to me, so I woke myself long enough to listen.  
  
"... fetus is fine, but Annie is-"  
  
"What was that Robert?" I didn't want him to finish that so I brought him back to the good news on the baby.  
  
"Okay. The baby shifted sideways. She'll be all right if we can get her out of there in time. But the movement caused some complications. If we don't do the surgery now we'll lose both of them." I didn't want to believe the man in front of me. I wanted him to be some lunatic stranger. Complications? What could he mean by complications? I couldn't lose them both. And ...  
  
"Wait. It's a girl?" Robert managed to smile and held out a permission slip to me. He really meant to do surgery on my wife. It began to sink in then that either way I might lose one, or both of the most important women in my life.  
  
I kept it together long enough to sign the papers and then I let the tears take me. I sobbed until I was too tired to cry anymore. And then I just let myself go numb. The tears never stopped, they never once stopped, but the sobs quieted after the first half hour. When Robert came back to me he had a shaky smile on his face. And for the first time I was the one in the waiting room, clinging to that faint smile with even fainter hope.  
  
"The surgery was a success. You have a brand new baby girl. And she seems just as strong and stubborn as her parents." I felt the first sob in nearly an hour force through my throat. Robert was telling me it would all be okay. Wasn't he? "Your welcome to go see them now. But I do have some bad news ..."  
  
"No." I wanted so badly to hang onto that hope. To bask in this moment when my family was whole.  
  
"I'm afraid so Darien. The complications Anna suffered were too much. She's very weak. And I'm not sure she'll even make it through the night. I'm so sorry man." He tried to lay a comforting hand on my shoulder, but the touch revolted me and I yanked away. How dare he tell me I have a new family, and then take it away again. How dare he!  
  
Yeah, how dare he have worked for hours to save my wife and daughter and then break the news as nicely as he could. I couldn't blame him. Much as I wanted to.  
  
So I let him lead me to the recovery room, and to the sight I had hoped never to see.  
  
Anna was hooked to what seemed a million machines. Why had I never noticed how horrible that really looks with my own patients? She was pale and thin and fragile looking. My fallen angel looked like death warmed over. It killed me inside, shattering any hope I may have had left. She looked like she was sleeping. And there was a thin veil of serenity upon her face that I clung to, trying to forget everything else. A watery wail pierced that air and I nearly jumped out of my skin. But the plastic baby bed placed next to my Annie soon became the sole focus of my attention.  
  
A tiny pink hand clawed at the air above her, as another wail was let loose. I stepped up next to the bed and looked down on a near duplicate of the woman laying a few feet away. I could see the same nose, red as it was. And the same round little chin. I had to touch her, feel her baby soft skin. But I almost didn't. My huge, rough hand next to her tiny head seemed barbaric. It scared me.  
  
"Don't let it scare you Darien." My head snapped up and I forgot to be amazed she had read my mind again. All I cared about was the faint sparkle of life in those endless blue eyes. I glanced at the baby but stepped around her and dropped down instead next to Annie's bed. I grabbed at her hand and ran into yet another wire and her hospital bracelet.  
  
"She needs you Baby. So you need to be strong." She seemed to be fading right before my eyes and I felt my soul fading along with her.  
  
"She needs you Anna. I don't know what to do with a baby." I don't know what to do without you. I wanted to scream that to her. But my throat seemed to have swollen shut.  
  
"You'll learn. You'll be a great father Darien. She's lucky to have you." Are those tears? She's crying. That was the last straw. She couldn't leave me. So I prayed. I hadn't prayed in years. Maybe my whole life. But I figured someone up there would listen to me. They had to. I just couldn't lose her.  
  
"God no. Anna you can't leave me. You are everything that makes my life worth living. You ARE my life!" She shook her head slowly, painfully. And reached across with her right hand to clasp the ones I had clenched on her left. She gave a pitifully weak little squeeze and shook her head again.  
  
"And you're mine. Darien, please. You have to let go. For our daughters sake. For your own." She paused then, having to draw in a shaky breath. Her eyes closed briefly and I thought maybe that was it. Maybe she would leave me right there.  
  
"Anna NO! You can't leave me!" She opened her eyes to stare at me again briefly.  
  
"I will always be with you Baby." She slowly began to fade away but turned, as if on an afterthought and smiled. "What will you name her?" I hardly heard the whisper, but the panic in my was very real and very sudden. All I could think of was the serene look on her face such a short while before while she slept. The serene look that only the angels would now see.  
  
"Serenity." She smiled, I think she liked that name. Then squeezed my hand one last time and closed her eyes to sleep. Robert came to me then and laid his hand once more on my shoulder.  
  
"It's time to go Darien." As he said those words the heart monitor flat lined and the incessant beep burned itself into my brain. Her grip had fallen away and her skin felt fake and plastic. I let her hand go and slowly stood from her side. I felt the numbness sink deep inside of me, felt it begin to eat me alive. I couldn't live without her. I didn't understand how I could still exist at all with her gone. And I would have simply continued to walk until I had made it outside and in front of a moving vehicle had Robert not stopped me at the door.  
  
"At least you still have your daughter." It took a minute, but a sparkle of life re-ignited inside of me. And with it a little flame of hope. I turned to look at the baby as her little feet and hands twitched against their blankets. Serenity. My little Serenity.  
  
My last ray of sunlight in this world. 


	4. I Wish For A Staplegun

"A Rose By Any Other Name" By: Rena Cresten Chapter 4  
Disclaimer: Is it just me or is this getting repetitive? I don't own Sailor Moon. Big Surprise ... NOT!  
Author's Notes: I loved each and every review! Write more, please!!!! I love to hear whether or not the emotions I express in my writing actually follow into the readers. Those of you who said you cried ... a special thanks to you for making my day. Oh, and it was all of you who did review that got me to sit down and write the next chapter. You can all give yourselves a big pat on the back. You deserve it! I hope you enjoy this chapter. I did say they didn't like each other in the summary, right? Well, this chapter certainly shows it. Enjoy.  
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Does anyone realize what it's really like to be me? Lets see ... I have to raise my daughter, which may I tell you can be like living in hell. Not that I would trade it for anything. Then, I have to find time at night to lock myself in my room and try to mourn my wife. I didn't have the time after she died to feel sorry for myself. Nope. I had diapers to change. I had bottles to prepare. I had one ear infection after another keep me up night after night. Then she got older. The terrible twos came. And I finally came to realize exactly why they called them that. Funny thing is, that stage never leaves. They don't mention that in the cutesy names they have for everything. Oh, and did I forget to tell you that she got the chicken pox over her fourth birthday? Yeah, that was fun. When I finally did something right, she got the damn pony for her party, she catches the chicken pox at her daycare.  
  
Oh, and another thing. She was blessed with her mother's fashion sense. When she was a baby, I use to think it was cute to let her pick the outfit she liked. I held two up, she chose one. It was a riot. Don't try this with your children. Now she has like a thousand pairs of shoes, most of them she scuffed and now refuses to wear anymore. It's like they have some flesh eating disease. She won't even look at them. But God forbid I throw them out. They might go with one of the zillions of skirts she just had to have. I am not even going into shirts, jackets, and socks. How many different kinds of socks does a four year old need? If you want your budget in tact, don't ask my daughter.  
  
If you couldn't tell ... she's a little spoiled. Well, what did you expect for my little angel? If I go overboard, it's my problem. She's still sweet and loving and kind. If she's spoiled, so be it.  
  
And hey, to top it all off ... Andrew has made it his goal in life for the last two years to fix me up with someone. He thinks my adorable Serenity needs a mother. More than that, he thinks I need another woman in my life. Me, I think Rini is more than enough. Yeah. Teeny Rini, sometimes I wished that name fit her. She came into this world with a flourish, and she has certainly kept it up.  
  
Now, back to the subject at hand. I have been set up on yet another blind date by my well meaning, but soon to be dead, best friend. I must admit, this woman has made it through the last few hours without singeing my eyebrows off, screaming, freeing the lobster, or protesting I would look great in a pale green eye shadow. So I decided to give her the last big test.  
  
"Yeah, I have a four year old daughter." You would be amazed how many women run for the hills when I say that. You hear horror stories about men doing that, and you would think the motherly instinct in women would kick in some of the time. Negative. Most of the time it crashes and burns.  
  
"Really? How sweet." She seemed actually sincere when she said that. Good God, could I have found the ONE at last? She didn't pick her teeth with her knife. She didn't snort when she laughed. Which wouldn't have been bad, had I not been on a date with a woman who would snort so hard she gave herself a bloody nose. That was amusing the first time. That's it. This one was attractive as well. So I invited her up to the apartment for a nightcap. I wasn't sure if she understood I really meant I was offering her a drink. She spent the next few minutes primping in the bathroom. Why women do that, men will never know. And personally, I refuse to ask. Now what comes next is the part I kinda wish I could forget. When Michelle, that was her name wasn't it? No, that was the one before. This was Bethany. Yeah, Bethany. Well, when I was about to go check on Bethany she suddenly came running out of the bathroom, screaming and tearing at her hair. Can you understand why I want to forget this? No? Well, her hair had magically caught on fire. Yes, now you understand. And you probably also understand why I forbade Rini to have candles in her room anymore. Which of course lasted five minutes. Just until she stuck out her bottom lip to quiver a little and her eyes filled with tears. I'm not stupid, I know its all a ruse. But if you ever meet her, try to say no to that face. Try it. I dare you.  
  
So ends another night, and soon begins another work week.  
  
I quit my job at the hospital shortly after my wife died. I couldn't stand the machines and that horrible beeping sound of the heart monitors. I opened my own private practice. Just a small little office for menial little problems. It was a family practice, so my daughter could come and visit sometimes. My head nurse, Mina, loved her from the moment they met. My Rini, well lets just say Mina is the only woman she would not set fire to.  
  
This was one of those days when Rini would come to visit. She spent most of the time picking out her favorite stickers and shoving them in her little purse. Did I mention on the list before she had a purse in every color? Just try to imagine her closet for a moment. Makes me shudder. Anyway, Rini was quite busy that day with our new shipment of stickers and I was having a horrible time with our computer system. I'm not a computer whiz by any means, but I was just about to the point of giving in for the system upgrade. Knowing full well it would mean I would have to learn a whole new system and embarrass myself horribly.  
  
You know when they have those moments in movies when the most beautiful woman in the world walks in and everything moves in slow motion? Well, this was not one of those moments. In fact Mrs. Mallone walked in with her three children and the waiting room was taken over by the little monsters. So I never noticed the woman who walked in just after her. My receptionist took care of her in fact, so I never once had to glance her way.  
  
My receptionist, Amy, showed her into a room and Mina checked on her briefly to make notes. When I did walk in I was looking at the chart for the little boy I was to check for some sort of infection in the glands.  
  
"All right, Albert, and how are we feeling today?" I don't remember ever having the sensation of being knocked off my feet before. But that day I could have fallen flat on my butt from shock alone. The little boy was as adorable as they came. He had bright blue eyes and a mop of curly brown hair. But I really didn't notice him. I found myself entranced instead by the woman who had brought him in.  
  
Her beautiful blond hair was like sunlight with moonlight highlights, even pulled back in that tight bun. And her skin was like perfect porcelain, peachy and creamy. And her eyes were ...  
  
Well, to sum this all up. My Anna was standing before me all over again. She was just a little taller, maybe. And had filled out a little more than my Anna, not that I'm complaining about Anna. Just trying to keep my sanity about seeing her double sitting before me after four years.  
  
"What are you looking at?" Her voice was the same but ... it sounded hard and cold. Anna never sounded hard or cold. She was always warm and tender. "Should I charge admission or are you gonna take a look at the brat?" Definitely not Anna.  
  
"Oh, sorry. You look remarkably like someone I use to know."  
  
"Yay, for me. Can we get this over with, I have a meeting in an hour." That strained civility in her tone set off a cord inside of me and I would have loved nothing less than to staple her pretty little mouth shut. Mind you, I'm a peaceful and benign kind of person. But the urge to tie her up and throw her off a cliff was very real and very strong.  
  
"Your son?" Please say no, please say no.  
  
"Are you kidding? Take a look at this figure. Do I look like I have children?" I did take a look. Well, she offered! And I had to admit, she did look amazing. "He's my sister's. Thank God."  
  
Well, if the urge to staple her mouth shut was strong before, it was overwhelming now. What did bug me a little though, was why. I had dealt with many a vile, yes vile is a good word for her, person and never wanted harm to come to them. This woman though, her I badly wanted to see go through a wood chipper. It was a brand new sensation to me. I wasn't particularly sure I liked it.  
  
"Well, this shouldn't take too long." She gave me a smile. Well, I think it was a smile. Looked more like a sneer. So I quickly checked his glands, took a look down his throat, and swabbed it. Then sent the swab off to the lab across the hall. When I returned to the room the boy hadn't moved, but his aunt was up and pacing. She was yelling something rather nasty into her cell phone before slamming it shut and glaring ruthlessly at me.  
  
"Well?" I could almost picture myself with that staple gun. I would aim it right at her mouth and ...  
  
"The results should be in by the end of the day. We have your number, well the parent's number on file so we'll call them with the results." She quickly grabbed the little boys hand and lead him out of the room and into the waiting room to pay.  
  
I admit, I watched the way her skirt slid over her hips and along her legs as she walked. Bad me. But she was such a dead ringer for my wife, and my wife was such a beautiful woman. And ...  
  
Okay, slow down. Unclean thoughts. Bad for family practice. Bad for me.  
  
"You okay Dare?" Mina was a kind soul, and lord knows any man would fall for her in a heartbeat. In fact, Andrew once told me I should ... what did he say? ... saddle up and ride? Something horrible like that. Mina was okay. A beautiful blond bombshell with a kind personality and a great sense of humor. But she seemed more the type I would set my brother up with, if I had a brother.  
  
"Sure. Who was that siren anyway?" Mina thought that over for a second before answering.  
  
"Her name is Serena Kingsly. And I think siren is the perfect word for her. She would sing to any man to get what she wants, then let them die painfully on the rocks at her feet." Serena Kingsly huh? Where had I heard that name?  
  
"How do you know so much about her Mina?" It occurred to me then that I hadn't gotten the little boy a sticker. I felt like I had somehow failed. But he would have to come back, for a checkup at least. And I would give him a huge handful then. Yeah, that would make it right.  
  
"You don't know her? She's on the cover of every business magazine in the country. And her company has been featured in the Top 100. She's the biggest name in business since Bill Gates and the Silicon Valley. Oh, and since she's in charge of half of the fashion industry by now, every fluff magazine out there wants her to pose for them." The name suddenly clicked. She was the new up-and-commer in the fashion industry. She owned a handful of modeling agencies. Had her own fashion line created, which I might add became a hit instantly. And owned a few magazines, hotels, and a shipping business to boot. It was no wonder she was dressed so nicely. If I had her money I'd dress like that too. Well, Rini would dress like that. I still enjoy my jeans and a T-shirt.  
  
Unbidden came the picture of her in jeans and a T-shirt. Followed shortly afterward by just her in my T-shirt. Nothing else. Oh no, unclean thoughts again. I have gotta do something else.  
  
"Daddy? Can we go to lunch now?" Saved by the angel.  
  
"Yes, of course sweetheart. In just a minute." I checked a few more charts, but she had already done that. Did I mention how smart she is? That was a real pain to deal with. Most children are parrots. Mine not only mimicked, she actually learned the meaning of the world or action. Uh huh, you can guess what that was like. She knew more about my schedule, at four, than I knew at thirty one. So shortly there after, we went to lunch.  
  
Can you use a staple gun on your mind?  
  
NO MORE UNCLEAN THOUGHTS! 


	5. And the Award goes to

"A Rose By Any Other Name"  
  
By: Rena Cresten  
  
Chapter 5  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own it. Still wish I did. Wanna marry Darien. Can't do that either, so I married my husband this last July 19, 2003. See, don't have the money anymore to be worth suing. Case closed.  
  
Author's Notes: Ahh.... I finally got this chapter done. Hope it meets with everyone's approval. Things should be getting much better from here on out. Enjoy!  
  
*********************  
  
"She's a model." Bless Andrew's heart, if I don't rip it out first, he did try to find the best women for me. Well, the best in his mind. And it occurred to me just then that perhaps I should make Andy put together a file on each woman. Yeah, like I have on my patients. With pictures and biographies and so on. Then I could just tell him no without having to leave my couch. The thought was really starting to settle in when Andrew pulled me back to reality.  
  
"Come on Dare, what could it hurt?" Was he pouting at me? "She's beautiful. Do you know how many guys would love to date a model?"  
  
"You date her." He laughed at me. And for some reason I couldn't find the joke in all of this. "What?"  
  
"I already asked Mina to go with me." Ah, now I get it. "If you aren't gonna take the opportunity, I figured I would." Was it just me, or is my friend a pig?  
  
"And if a say no ..." It was an honest question. But from the shocked look on Andy's face it was like I had suddenly grown three more heads and maybe a few tentacles. Wow, that must be the look they had in mind when talking about someone's tongue 'lolling' out.  
  
"You can't be serious!" Can't be serious about what? Oh yes, now I remember. The whole model thing. I was stuck on the absurd way his face was transforming. Well, if he could be that grotesque with shock, I guess I could put up with another beautiful woman. Did that sound as bad as I thought it did?  
  
Now for the hard part.  
  
Telling Rini.  
  
Now you may think I sounded scared just then. You would be right. My daughter was the soul focus of my life, and she knew it. And she had a nasty habit of doing everything in her considerable power to keep it that way. Somewhere along the years I had forgotten to even look for any of Anna in Rini, it was a hopeless cause. Unless one saw her asleep. Then the beautiful angel I called my daughter was the perfect copy of her wondrous and kindhearted mother.  
  
Keeping the image of her resting ever so peacefully among her pillows and stuffed rabbits, I kept the thought of how death row-like the trek down the hallway seemed. I also kept the images of flaming women, acid eaten dresses, and horrific screams at bay. That was until I made it to her doorway and lost all of my courage.  
  
What was I going to say to her?  
  
How was I going to deal with her tantrum?  
  
Who was left, sane enough to baby-sit her?  
  
Hey, I'm the father here. And if I want to go out for the night and have a little fun every now and then, I'm fully entitled.  
  
Yeah, that's the spirit. That's what I'll say if I have to be strong.  
  
Yet when I finally left that fluffy pink room I felt so overwhelmed I could have actually fainted. And I must have looked it, for when Andrew took one look at my bulging eyes, pale skin, and the drool just waiting to drop down my chin, he ran to my rescue with some sort of drink in his hands. When I sipped it I didn't know whether to bite him or thank him. The whisky was so strong it nearly knocked me on my butt. And though it was exactly what I needed, I still had my principles to never drink. Then I truly considered that. Remembering the horrific temper tantrum my lovely daughter had just thrown, the endless string of equally horrific women Andrew dropped on me, and the boring THING that is my life, I grabbed a hold of that whisky and downed the whole glass.  
  
"I'm going, Andy. Tell her I'll pick her up around ... when is this party?"  
  
"Seven."  
  
"Okay, I'll be at her house at 6:30. Can you get me another drink?"  
  
****  
  
The rest of the week came and went, three days of Rini screaming and refusing to eat. But surprisingly I didn't give in. And boy, was I proud of myself. My daughter on the other hand got sent to her room for the first time in her life. It was enlightening to see the anger fade from her face when she finally realized I wouldn't give in to her. She had never before come up against opposition like this and I could see the light of power fading from her eyes. I didn't feel as bad about it as I thought I would.  
  
When that evening came I tugged my white tie into place against the white dress shirt. Then dawned the black dinner jacket and gave a once over to my appearance.  
Not bad.  
  
I caught a glimpse of Rini in the mirror and her sad little face made the hard-nosed-Dad-mask crumble. Smiling at her I turned and crouched to receive the tear filled hug. Her eyes were so red and her cheeks so puffy she had obviously been crying for a long time. Those things she couldn't fake.  
  
"Honey, I'm just going out to a party that Uncle Andy invited me to. He has a friend in town that he wants me to take because he already has a date with Aunty Mina. I couldn't tell him no. Besides, Honey, it wouldn't be fair to me. I need to have grown-up fun sometimes." She sniffled loudly and her face scrunched unhappily.  
  
"But I try to be all growned up for you so that you can have grown-up fun. Don't I do it right?" Oh God, how to answer a question like that. Especially with her bright blue eyes staring at me so pitifully.  
  
"Of course you do it right. But Baby Girl, your not a grown-up. You don't need to be. You need to enjoy being a kid, cause you only have one chance at it." I knew I was late now, and try as I might I couldn't keep a small part of me from reminding me of that fact. Funny thing was it wasn't just that small part of me that wanted to go. I really did want to go, for the first time in nearly five years I wanted to go and have fun. I wanted to dance with a beautiful woman and once more be a fun loving adult. I-  
  
Oops, saved by the bell. That would be the new baby-sitter. I actually felt sorry for the teenager waiting outside my door. But she charged a decent price, and besides ... no one else would dare to take this job. I couldn't complain.  
  
"You be good Rini. I am running out of baby-sitters quite quickly. And the next time I go out your gonna get stuck with Old Lady Mitchelle." The horrified look on her tiny face was enough to convince me I had made my point. And the fact that this new baby-sitter came equipped with facials and hot curlers made my leaving an almost joyous experience. Yay!  
  
****  
  
I wish I could say I was just as impressed by the model Andy had talked me into taking out. Oh, don't get me wrong! She had hair like the blackest night sky and eyes like warm honey. She was thankfully still shorter than me, and possessed a figure to temp God himself. But she had the brains of a newt. No, that's not really fair ... to the newt.  
  
The party on the other hand was a raving success. The ballroom was lavish, the food was a culinary masterpiece, and the company, besides my date, was an intellectual thrill. All in all I was fully enjoying myself. Perhaps even drunk a little too much punch. Yes, I remembered my no drinking rule. But people change. And I already knew I would be sending my date home in a cab, why not me as well.  
  
Did I remember to put everything about having fun in past tense? If I didn't, I should have. For while I was having a stimulating conversation on rare diseases I finally learned who the patron of this party really was. You wanna know how I found out? Well, I'll tell you.  
  
She walked up to me and faced me down with a sneer that made her beautiful face quite grotesque. And not the lovely sweep of her golden hair nor the glitter of yellow diamonds against her alabaster skin, which by the way matched her utterly tasteful and elegant yellow satin dress perfectly, could make her look very appealing with that vicious glint in her eyes. Did I manage to compliment her profusely while trying to tell you how hideous she looked? Well, I'll be darned. I did.  
  
"Who the hell invited you?" Do you remember that wood chipper from when I first met her? Well, I realized in that moment just how graceful and lovely yellow satin would look flying about in tiny bits, so long as she was still wearing it. "Was it my pathetic sister? She's always bringing that horrible 'family' atmosphere to things that should be strictly business. You've made your appearance, why don't I call you a cab home."  
  
Maybe it was the excess punch, maybe it was this newfound power and adult sense I had about myself, either way I found myself walking steadily toward her and leaning my face down towards hers. For a brief moment I saw her eyes widen in shock, or fear, or something like it. Then narrow into icy blue slits. I should have apologized, excused myself, and enjoyed a nice rerun of "I Love Lucy" on TV. Um, did I mention I had already drunk far too much for a person who doesn't drink? Good, I want that on the record for future reference.  
  
I would like to think I blacked out and woke up with my body doing something I could blame on an alternate personality or something. But, unfortunately I was fully aware of every stupid movement I made.  
  
I was aware of sliding my arm around her tiny waist and how smooth and soft her hip was under the grip of my hand.  
  
I was aware of the slender hands that ran up my chest as if to push me away and yet never did.  
  
I was aware of the true falsity of her anger just before I bent my head down and triumphantly claimed her blood red lips. I recognized, if only partially, the foggy and yet electric feel of my body in response. I recognized the soft and supple feel of her lips that were so much more than perfect. And nearly lost myself to it.  
  
But the fact she was responding to me woke me instantly to the situation. And I pulled myself back from the heaven I had tasted.  
  
Her red lipstick was slightly smeared and her bottomless blue eyes were still slightly dazed and confused. It made me wonder if she had ever actually been kissed before in her life. And when the anger began to flood back into her face I realized I hadn't just overstayed my welcome, I had decimated it.  
  
"You bastard. Who the hell do you think you are?" Her voice shook, but I think I was the only person to hear it. "Get out of my house now. And I hope I never see you again until the end of eternity."  
  
"Till then." Why the hell did I say that? That's it, who took control of my body and how can I get rid of him?  
  
I did have the dignity though to very calmly walk out of the party, nodding a curt good-bye to my date. And only when in the comfort of a cab, because I really did have too much to drink, I let the dignity slide away.  
  
"Stupid idiot! Have you lost every ounce of functioning brain cells? What the hell made you kiss her? You should win the award for 'Biggest Loser in the World.' What are you going to say to Andrew? How are you going to face yourself in the morning? And why do you have to be too truthful to blame it on the punch!" Needless to say, the cabby tried his damnedest not to stare at me and laugh. Which would have made it just that much better. The perfect end to a perfectly lousy evening. 


	6. The unpredictable Ms Kinsly

"A Rose By Any Other Name"

By: Rena Cresten

Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Don't own it. Never will. And if I can barely pay my phone bill, I certainly can't pay anyone who sues me. So please don't … thanks!

Author's Notes: I am so very sorry that I have been gone for soooo long. It was very bad of me. And now that I have more time, and a few friends who ask me at least once a week where my next chapter is, I should be writing more. You can all shout hooray! And now the story really gets moving!

Have you ever had the feeling that Fate hates you? Or that you are the biggest joke at the moment in Fate's plan? Well, then maybe you should have been there when Andrew caught up with me a few days later. I've never seen him speechless before. Nor have I seen him, quite literally, fall out of his chair from laughter. But both seemed to be the case on Monday when he paid my office a lunchtime visit.

It was no consolation that Mina appeared to be quite happy to see him. Nor that he seemed likewise as happy. Oh no, that day had been ruined from the moment I had opened my door to the deliverymen. The morning had been spent watching my obviously very adept secretary take charge of the new computer system I had ordered. And while it was little more than utter embarrassment, I sat as still as possible while she tried to explain the inner workings to me.

I suppose it was the blank look meant to hide her real feelings that told me just how incompetent I really was. So I had her explain the utmost basics to me, what I would need that day without help, and quickly got out of her hair before she could give me another blank and ego-devastating look.

It was shortly thereafter that Andrew graced my office with his flamboyant presence. I had the odd feeling he was trying to vie for the Most Beautiful Man Award. Of course, the perfectly pressed blue button down shirt, that was oddly the exact same color as the socks he wore, didn't dissuade me. Don't ask me why I noticed his socks, probably trying to focus on the ground so that I could ignore him. If it hadn't been for the blinding shine on his shoes I might have pulled it off. Or it might have had something to do with his friendly, if painful, thump on the back and his fabulously comforting greeting.

"You didn't tell me you wanted to bag the untouchable Ms. Kingsly!" And he seemed so sure about himself too. How could someone be so wrong and still think they were so right? Of course, I ignored the little voice in my head that reminded me that I had in fact wanted just that a few times over the past weekend. That little voice would meet an untimely death soon anyway.

When I tried to dissuade him of the idea he grew utterly silent. I explained her horrible behavior, the treatment of her nephew, the absolutely foul words that seemed to continuously flow out of her lovely mouth. It was shortly after that little admonition that he decided to fall out of his chair laughing. Of course, looking back I suppose I can understand why he would find that funny. I did have this odd habit of complimenting her in the middle of a tirade. If it hadn't been my own habit, or concerning her, I suppose I would find it funny too.

Oh, and do you know what the cherry on the top was?

That's right. The devil herself.

She came storming into the waiting room and, after threatening my dear Amy and lovely Mina with horrible bodily harm, she tore open the dividing door and entered the rear of the office. Now, normally I would kindly remind people that this area was for patients only and lead them back out into the waiting room. But I had this sinking feeling I wouldn't be quite so lucky with the raging Ms. Kingsly.

I want it on the record that I did begin this encounter with a welcoming smile and a gentle tone of voice. Where it went from there was not my fault. Okay, I just wanted that clear.

"Why Ms. Kingsly. What a pleasant surprise. How can I help you?" If the death glare she was giving me hadn't put cracks in my happy veneer the barely concealed chuckle behind me certainly did. Note to self, kill best friend if I live through this.

"I want to talk to you." She paused to pointedly glare at Andy before continuing. "Alone."

Now I know what your thinking. Not the same thing I was. Okay, so we probably are on the same page. Because it was hardly my fault the little flip my stomach did when she said that. It was completely the fault of the itty bitty skirt she was wearing with that business suit. Or the fact her hair wound in that tight bun made me think of nothing but taking it down.

Okay, now where did I put the staple gun from earlier?

"Very well Ms. Kingsly. I haven't a lot of time, I have a two o'clock appointment. So if you would follow me." I lead her towards my office, along the way violently shoving my grinning friend off of his chair. But from the moment I closed the door I almost wished for my annoying friend tied to my leg instead of the fuming female that suddenly turned on me, metaphorical claws extended.

"I want to make one thing perfectly clear before I continue …" I had the odd impulse to admonish her for the rude tone. But I admit, it probably had more to do with the image of spanking her the same way parents do to a child. Obviously, she had no wish to join in my merry little fantasy. That was blinding obvious when she stuck her slender little finger out at me and paced at me like a lioness going in for the kill. I could feel the gulp coming long before my throat actually started working. "… I don't like you. I have never liked you. And any and all contact we may have in the future will be less joyful than a hostile take over. Have I made myself clear?"

When I found my head bobbing up and down like some stupid puppet I stopped it immediately. It wasn't respectable to look like the doctor version of a bobble head toy.

"May I ask then, why you are here?" I marked a tiny point on my side when I got the words out in a calm voice. And another little tab when I saw her falter. But I'll be darned if she didn't smile at me. Or at least that semblance of a smile that is a little too chilly to be welcomed.

"I'm here to make you a deal. A business proposition if you will." And while a little part of me kind of died inside that all she wanted with me was business, the other parts were jumping for joy that she wanted me at all. Traitors.

"All right. Just what are you proposing?" She calmed herself a moment, much like a bird smoothing its feathers. Then slid herself closer to me in a way that she must have known emphasized the tiny little black skirt she was wearing. And for a brief moment all I could focus on was just how long and pale her legs were below all that black satin.

"I want you …" My eyes shot up to her face just in time to see the predatory gleam before it was covered in a seductive light that turned her lovely sky blue eyes into a stormy and mysterious ocean. And I knew, before she had even finished her sentence, two things. The first was that I was dead meat. The second was that it didn't really matter what she wanted from me, I would give it to her in the blink of an eye. "… to date me."

Okay, hold the phone here. Was that my over active imagination talking? Or did she just make all my dreams come true? If I wasn't a man, I think I would faint.

"Excuse me?" Here's hoping she missed that embarrassing squeak that just exited my mouth. Though by the dark smile I'm receiving with those perfect white teeth, I doubt that.

"I want you to date me. You and I will go to every big function I have, and the few you might have as well. We will hold hands, smile, and kiss if the occasion calls for it. And for your trouble … I will give you anything you want. Anything." Now I must admit I was intrigued by her offer. Okay, enough crap. I was so blown away by all of this that for the longest moment I thought my brain had forever shut down. If it had its own face it might be drooling and making idiot sounds. Wait, maybe that was my face. Deciding to grab my dignity back I pulled myself up to my full height and raised my finger to her. The mimicked position was not lost on me.

"Now see here! What makes you think I'm just going to let you come in here and walk all over me, making obscene suggestions-" Then she kissed the tip of my outstretched finger and for a second, I completely lost my train of thought. And though I fought to regain my intelligence she took my momentary lapse and used it against me. Plastering herself along my body and running her fingers up into my hair I once more forgot why this was a bad idea. Forgot about anything but wrapping my arms around her and pulling her closer. Forgot until I leaned down to kiss her once more, suddenly unable to think let alone forget anything. Nothing existed except this beautiful vixen I held in my arms. The universe coalesced into a set of warm red lips, until I forgot if I was even breathing anymore.

The first moan I heard rumbling through her lips set off something that had been buried inside of me for nearly five years. And for the first time in what must have been my whole life, I was engulfed in mind numbing lust. The kind no one can see their way out of. The kind that makes you back a total stranger up against a wall and slide your hands where they really shouldn't go.

And I would have probably done some horrible things to Ms. Kingly if Andrew hadn't chosen that exact moment to throw open the door and rush in to save me from whatever horror the pounding on the wall had been. He of course was in for a surprise when all he found was a pair of half dressed people and a tornado of knocked over papers.

And while he was once more falling over laughing, I was forced to yet again think. And I quickly came to the realization that I was in the most compromising position of my life. And to make it all worse … all I wanted was to attack her again. Ms. Kingsly remedied that thought quite quickly when she expertly replaced her clothes and pulled a compact out of some jacket pocket I had not seen. It was rather discomforting to know she could so easily pull herself back together when I was still raging around like a bull inside.

When she replaced the compact she gave me what must have passed for a warm smile. Sliding up against me again she gave me a quick peck on the cheek.

"Now Darling, I'll have my secretary call you and give you the details for Saturday." When she kissed my cheek again I had the sinking feel that I had just signed myself up for the wildest ride of my life. And I must admit, it was terrifying.

"Now Ms. Kingsly …" She laughed at me. The witch actually laughed at me. And try as I might I couldn't keep the hint of a smile from tugging at my lips.

"Serena. I think we've passed those kinds of formalities. Don't you Darien?" She leaned up again and brushed her lips across mine briefly. And as I watched her sway across the floor of my office, I forgot to wonder just where she had learned my name.

I was a little troubled though when she gave Andrew, my best friend, a cold look and brushed past him as though he were some lower life form. The smile he had turned on her faded from his face, replaced by a deep frown. But before he could even open his mouth to reprimand me I sank into the chair behind my desk, slipping my head into my hands in defeat.

"What have I done?"


	7. Lists, Lists and More Lists

"A Rose By Any Other Name"

By: Rena Cresten

Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own anything Sailor Moon. Seeing as I'm not rich and famous, I'd think that was kind of obvious. But the story is mine, please do not copy or use it without my permission. Thanks.

Author's Note: It has been a long and hard time since I last posted anything. And I truly apologize for not posting something sooner. I just hope I will be able to return to more usual postings now that things have settled down a little … I hope you enjoy this chapter. Not a lot going on, but it is good filler. And great for the characters. Enjoy!

When she said her secretary would get a hold of me, I didn't expect my phone to ring later that afternoon. Nor did I expect the crisp female voice that almost instantly began spouting out instructions.

"Are you writing this down Dr. Shields?" I wasn't, but by God I hurried to get a pen and paper right then. Thankfully she took a full breath before continuing again with her endless lists. "Ms. Kingsly requests you wear a simple black tux, we can work on your wardrobe for the future next week. She wants shoes that shine, and I do not mean with anything glittery. They must be well polished. Your hair should be slicked back but still allow a few pieces to fall in your face."

"How exactly do I do that?" If I had had the time to think, I might have been offended. Thankfully, thinking was out of the question as the woman continued.

"I will send a stylist over sometime this week to help you." I could hear papers being shuffled for a moment before she began speaking again. "You will wear the cufflinks she had sent to you."

"Cufflinks?" There was an exasperated sigh and a decidedly nastier tone in her voice. If I could have zipped my lips shut, I would have. But I couldn't, so I stuck to simply pressing my lips tightly together.

"Yes Dr. Shields. They should arrive tomorrow. You WILL wear the cufflinks. And it is a rather casual affair, so no tie is required. Which means, if you wear one, it will be removed. Now lets see …" Again the papers were shuffled, and I had the odd feeling I had become Pinocchio before he became a real boy. A total puppet, and bending to the master's will.

"You may call her 'Darling' or 'Sweetheart', but 'Honey' is out of the question. Her name is Serena, you will not shorten it. Her middle name is none of anyone's business, especially yours."

"But, what if someone asks?" Another exasperated sigh and I took the moment to wonder who I disliked more, the siren or her secretary. And came to the decision … it depended on the moment.

"You must know how to talk your way out of something so simple. What kind of doctor are you?" All my days I will thank my lucky stars that my brain picked up on the fact that was a rhetorical question. One can only imagine what might have happened should I have tried to answer that.

"Dr. Shields, I will be faxing the full list to you." Somewhere buried under that innocuous statement was the implication that I could not handle these, so called, simple instructions without as much help as humanly possible. Had I not been so dumbfounded by the enormity of what exactly I had signed myself up for, I might have been insulted.

"Well then, my fax number is-"

"I already have it Dr. Shields. And the list is on its way. Once you have looked it over, and if you should have any intelligent questions, please contact me and I will try to straighten you out." Now THAT I was fully insulted by. And had she stayed on the line longer than it took for her to bid me good day, I might have said something. But before I could make my feelings known I found myself sitting there with my mouth open and a dial tone in my ear.

And, in utter obviousness, Amy found her way into my office almost the moment I hung up the phone. Of course, I wasn't angry with her. By the jilted steps, she was obviously pushed through the door. And the shy blush meant the idea wasn't hers. If I hadn't immediately guessed at the mastermind, these telltale signs would have certainly given her away. Before Amy could even begin her stuttering speech, whatever it might have been about, I held up my hand and she thankfully fell silent.

"Mina, come in here please." And the blushing blonde in question slipped through the door with a smile only barely apologetic enough to count. Mostly she was just sorry to have been found out. I certainly hadn't spent nearly five years with these girls and not have learned a few things. I took a moment to stare between the two of them before speaking again. "I know you've both already heard about Ms. Kingsly and myself."

"Serena." If looks could kill. But at least it got Mina to shut up, not an easy thing to do I promise you.

"Yes, Serena. Now, as I was saying. Serena and I have decided to see where our-" I paused for a moment. Unsure myself exactly what it was we had. "Where our attraction will go. And I am going to need your discretion in this." Amy surprised me by speaking up first. I remained silent if only in shock of where my sweet and quiet receptionist had gone.

"Darien, I have to ask-" She stepped forward and actually frowned at me. "What good could come of bringing a woman like that into Rini's life?"

I had to admit I hadn't really taken that into account. And thinking about it now, I was suddenly very upset. My baby girl was everything to me. And what was best for her had always been at the top of my list. Until now, that is. And that little insight sent me shooting to my feet and pacing like a caged tiger.

What would happen to my baby girl around this woman? What horrible behavior would my little sponge pick up. For a moment I was beside myself with worry, and horribly angry that I may have caused it. What sort of father am I?

"Darien, calm down. Its going to be alright." Always full of comfort, Mina was a lot like sunshine. Warm and soothing. But I wasn't ready to be soothed.

"It's not going to be alright Mina. How could I have done this to my baby!" She tried to touch my arm, but I found I couldn't stop pacing long enough to let her. "What am I going to do?"

"Don't go out with her. Call off this relationship before it can really start." Amy had a point. But how could she know. How could she understand.

"I can't just do that Amy. I wish I could. Oh, how I wish I could." I had stopped at my windows and was staring out at the tree rimmed parking lot. "I can't seem to make myself let go of her. My mind won't stop thinking about her. And when I kissed her …" Even thinking about it, my body reacted with an internal shiver. "And she looks so much like my Annie …"

I felt the tears well up at the same moment Mina wrapped her arms around me and Amy left to cancel the last of my appointments for the day. And it seemed my office had never run so well before. Andrew was called, Mina cleaned everything up and Amy finished all paperwork to allow me to come in a little later tomorrow. About the time Drew graced the office with his slightly flamboyant presence, Mina and Amy took off to pick up Rini for the night.

And I was left on my own. My apartment all to myself. A tub of cookie dough ice cream and a pizza with everything but the kitchen sink on it sat on my coffee table. A non stop parade of Three Stooges movies cluttering my VCR. And even among all of the comfort, I came to a rather upsetting realization. I didn't feel like I needed to be comforted. There was no fear about the future, and not a piece of me wanted to take it back.

What was wrong with me?


End file.
